Yeah. Good morning and welcome. Welcome to all. It is good to be in God's house. It is good to come before the creator of heaven and earth. who is also our Savior. Certainly we call Jesus Savior, the Apostle also says God our Savior, God the Father our Savior, and God is three in one. This is the one before whom we come. People of God, let us begin our worship with a time of silent and reverent prayer before him. Amen. If you would stand, our call to worship coming from Psalm 46. Come behold the works of the Lord, how he has brought desolations on the earth. He makes wars to cease to the end of the earth. He breaks the bow and shatters the spear. He burns the chariots with fire. Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our fortress. Indeed, directing your attention to the bulletin, I ask, congregation, where does your help come from? Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth. Let us receive then God's greeting this morning. To the saints, the faithful brothers and sisters in Christ, grace to you and peace from God our Father. Amen. Let us, people of God, turn in song from that 46th Psalm, 46C. Let's sing all the stanzas of 46C together. God is our refuge and our strength, ♪ Forever near us ♪ ♪ We will not fear the earthly moon ♪ ♪ For God is nigh to cheer us ♪ ♪ Although the mountains quake ♪ ♪ And earth's foundations shake ♪ Oh. She is forever blessed with living waters welling. Since God is there, she stands unmoved in two bowls, counterswelling. God's speech and all his being. For the nation sees the Lord of hosts is nigh, Our Father's God most high is our eternal dwelling. Behold what God has done on earth, His wrath brings desolation. His grace, commanding wars to cease, Brings peace to every nation. Be still, for He is Lord, by all the earth adored, the Lord of hosts is nigh, our Father's God most high. is our soft habitation. Amen. Amen. People of God, let us turn now to God's will, God's perfect law, His clearly revealed, clearly stated commandments for His people for every time. Even as it is spoken in the midst of a specific deliverance, it is the word which comes to us still to this day. And so we read it as those delivered in this time to serve God according to these same commandments. Let us hear God's word. Exodus chapter 20 and God spoke all these words saying I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt out of the house of slavery You shall have no other gods before me You shall not make for yourself a carved image or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above or that is in the earth beneath or that is in the water under the earth You shall not bow down to them or serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain. Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter, your male servant or your female servant, or your livestock or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. Honor your father and your mother that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you. You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. You shall not covet your neighbor's house. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife or his male servant or his female servant or his ox or his donkey or anything that is your neighbor's. Certainly in summarizing the law, our Lord Jesus Christ said, the first and greatest commandment is this, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. This is the first and greatest commandment, the second is like it, that you shall love your neighbor as yourself. People of God, as we come Let us come with a song of confession together concerning God's commandments, our need of God, even as we hear them. Let's sing together 79B, the psalmist, again, giving us expression to bring our sins before God. 79B, let's sing the four stanzas together. Remember not, O God, the sins of long ago, With tender mercy visit us, distressed and humbled low. O Lord, our Savior, help and glorify your name. Deliver us from all our sins and take away our shame. ♪ In your compassion here ♪ Your prisoners plaintive sigh ♪ And in the greatness of your power ♪ Sing those about to die ♪ And safe within your fold ♪ We will exalt your name Our thankful hearts with songs of joy Your goodness will proclaim. People of God will continue working through Old Testament books, and we'll come to the New Testament for assurance of pardon. We are up to Ecclesiastes, a book where, to make a very basic outline, the preacher goes through various vanities of this world, and that word is kind of the central word that runs through it. There's vanity in the pleasures of this world. There's vanity in the wisdom of this world apart from God and various other vanities all explored, all gone into, all of which this preacher had access to, including great wealth, whatever he wanted. And then we come to chapter 12. And there's, we might say finally, reflection on all of these things. And there we read, remember also your creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, I have no pleasure in them. In other words, don't seek after all these vanities and waste your life doing it as I have. No, seek and remember your creator from your youth. Why? Well, these are the very last two verses of Ecclesiastes. For the end of the matter, all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments. For this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment with every secret thing, whether good or evil. He has worked through all these vanities, all these vanities of vanities, and it comes down to this. Remember God, look to him for your salvation, and then keep his commandments. It's, we might even say, perhaps we know that three part structure quite well. Guilt, where's the guilt? I've seen all the vanities of vanities, and that's 11 chapters of Ecclesiastes. Now we come to the last two verses, and he speaks about salvation, remember God, and service, keep his commandments. There is salvation in God. Remember him from your youth and always fear him. Keep his commandments. This is where there's not vanity, but truth and love salvation. Let us come before the Lord, our God, then our time of morning prayer. Lord, our Lord, make us to stand before your majesty. Make us in your presence to have hearts that would overflow with pleasure. Make us in your presence to know that our voice is heard. Make us in your presence to be still and have peace. To know who you are. To know the contrast between the worthless vanities of this world, pursued with pleasure for a time, as sin can be pleasure only for a season, but then Only, only hope in you. Lord, make us to know this, not through the difficult road of experience, but make us to repent early and often. Make us to repent from our youth, to trust in you from our youth. Make us to serve you always. Lord, use the strength of your people. Make your people to bear fruit for you a hundredfold for all the years of our lives. Lord, we rejoice whenever our hearts turn to you, but it is our plea. that there would not be wayward wanderings. that there would not be Christians who would serve with little fruit, with works that will be burned up, though the person would yet be saved. No, Lord God, bring us to you quickly. Bring us to you always. And in so doing, use us as your servants. Use us to show your love to the world, to shine it, to speak the truth of what you have done. And Lord, there is so much need for the truth. The access to information which we have is not helping in these things. No, and instead we see just confusion and conflicting reports. two very different sides to every story. Lord, bring peace and bring truth and bring wisdom and may your people be a beacon of this in the light of a world which hates discussion, in the light of a world which which is so one-sided in all that it is saying and doing. Lord, in light of a world where there are burning cities, let us say it this way, Lord God. It used to be a big deal when a city was being vandalized and burned, and now we don't even know all the cities where this has happened. In just a matter of months, something has gone from extremely rare and surprising to just another burning city. How has this happened? Lord, we pray that you would bring peace and truth and that this would be done through your word and through many being brought to your son. In short, Lord God, what we pray for is the fire of revival. What we pray for is spiritual awakening. This is what we desire in our own lives and in our own communities and in our own nation. Lord, we pray that you would be with those who are not able to gather with us this day. We think of those such as Cal and Bernie, not physically able to come, and we pray that you would watch over them. We pray that you would bless them, even as we give thanks, they can join us digitally. We pray that they would be blessed by that. Lord God, uphold them day by day, week by week. Lord, we pray that you would be with the members who are distant from us. In terms of geography, we think of those who are laboring such as Thomas and Andre with his military service, Lord God uphold them. We think also of Francois and his time of respite from his labors as a teacher and Lord we pray that you would give him and give him a Christian fellowship and also fellowship with his family, which is throughout Europe, he has family. So Lord bless his time there with his family and give him a Christian family to fellowship with as he is away from us. We give thanks for a word back from Francois that he is doing well and Lord continue to be with him. Lord, be with us now, and as we think of the need for truth in the world, Lord, again, impress the realities of the truth of your word upon each of our hearts, even in the particular preaching of your word this very morning. Lord, bring your word. to us, may it be faithfully proclaimed, may it be faithfully heard. This, Lord God, is our prayer. In Jesus' name, amen. People of God, let's stand and sing 27A, our Psalm of preparation, 27A. ♪ The Lord's my light and saving help ♪ ♪ I'll move out of this way ♪ ♪ The Lord's a stronghold of my life ♪ ♪ I'll move out of the way ♪ When evil doers threaten me to eat my flesh away, My adversaries and my foes will stumble in that day. Though armies roar on every side, my heart will feel no dread. The war against me should arise, yet I will lift my head. One thing I plead before the Lord and seek with hearts of praise, that I may come within God's house and dwell there praise upon the beauty of the lord and see his grace and seek to know within his house instruction in his ways for he will hide and shelter me when comes the ♪ He sets me high upon a rock ♪ ♪ His tent will keep me safe ♪ ♪ My head is lifted high above ♪ ♪ My foes to end me in ♪ ♪ I sacrifice within His tent ♪ ♪ With shouts of joy I sing ♪ Hear me when I call to you, be merciful and speak. Come seek my face, you told my heart. Your face, Lord, will I seek. Oh, do not hide your face from me, my parents may forsake me lord yet I am sure that Do not hide your face from me in your righteous wrath, O Lord. Teach me your way, lead me. Make me to be sure that in this life God's goodness I will see. These themes and others shared between Psalm 27 and Lamentations chapter 3. We'll begin reading at verse 18, excuse me, verse 19. We'll begin reading at verse 19 and we'll read to the end of the chapter and we'll focus on verse 25 to the end of Lamentations chapter three. Page 873 in most of the Pew Bibles. Lamentations chapter three, let us hear the word. of God beginning at verse 19 for our reading. Remember my affliction and my wanderings, the wormwood and the gall. My soul continually remembers it and is bowed down within me. But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope. The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. His mercies never come to an end. They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, says my soul. Therefore I will hope in Him. The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, the soul who seeks Him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord. It is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth. Let him sit alone in silence when it is late on him. Let him put his mouth in the dust. There he may yet hope. Let him give his cheek to the one who strikes, and let him be filled with insults. For the Lord will not cast off forever, but though he cause grief, he will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love. For he does not afflict from his heart or grieve the children of men. to crush underfoot all the prisoners of the earth, to deny a man justice in the presence of the Most High, to subvert a man in his lawsuit, the Lord does not approve. Who has spoken and it came to pass, unless the Lord has commanded it? Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that good and bad come? Why should a living man complain a man about the punishment of his sins? Let us test and examine our ways and return to the Lord. Let us lift up our hearts and hands to God in heaven. We have transgressed and rebelled and you have not forgiven. You have wrapped yourself with anger and pursued us, killing without pity. You have wrapped yourself with a cloud so that no prayer can pass through. You have made us scum and garbage among the peoples. All our enemies open their mouths against us. Panic and pitfall have come upon us, devastation and destruction. My eyes overflow with rivers of tears because of the destruction of the daughter of my people, My eyes will flow without ceasing, without respite, until the Lord from heaven looks down and sees. My eyes cause me grief at the fate of all the daughters of my city. I have been hunted like a bird by those who were my enemies without cause. They flung me alive into the pit and cast stones on me. Water closed over my head. I said, I am lost. I called on your name, O Lord. From the depths of the pit, you heard my plea. Do not close your ear to my cry for help. You came near when I called on you. You said, do not fear. You have taken up my cause, O Lord. You have redeemed my life. You have seen the wrong done to me, O Lord. Judge my cause. You have seen all their vengeance, all their plots against me. You have heard their taunts, O Lord, all their plots against me. The lips and thoughts of my assailants are against me all the day long. Behold, they're sitting and they're rising. I am the object of their taunts. You will repay them, O Lord, according to the work of their hands. You will give them dullness of heart. Your curse will be on them. You will pursue them in anger and destroy them from under your heavens, O Lord. So far the reading of God's holy word. The grass withers, the flower fades. The word of our Lord endures forever. dear congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ. We are working, a few of us and some brothers and sisters from Randolph, mostly brothers and sisters from Randolph, through a counseling course right now. And in these counseling lectures, Dr. Jim Neuheiser, a Christian counselor based in California, in what's been called his classic lectures. He speaks for a moment about just his personal experience as to when change comes about and how long it takes for change to come about. And then he says that from his years of experience, in his personal cases, it's about one third of the time when there's a need for repentance, there's just no repentance at all. And there's no change will happen. About one third of the time, there is repentance and it comes quickly and change comes quickly. And about a third of the time, there is change, but it comes very slowly. There's repentance, there's change, but it's a difficult, it's a tangled road. It takes time. Now this is not a universal rule, this is the experience of one counselor, but that kind of one-third, one-third, one-third split, what does it speak to? It speaks to this reality that the road to peace may be a long one. Do you see that qualified language in our theme for this morning? The road to peace may be a long one. And there can be many reasons for that. One could be the slowness of one to repent. Repentance is not always a lightning strike moment. Sometimes it almost can be in some sense, but that's not always how the Lord works. You might say this, sometimes the Holy Spirit works in one to bear fruit tenfold. Sometimes the Holy Spirit works to bear fruit a hundredfold. And sometimes we can use that kind of 10 verse a hundred language for repentance. Sometimes repentance comes and it comes heavy and faster. Sometimes it comes slower and more gradual. But there's other factors at play. There's more to this, isn't there? And because we see Lamentations 3, we have the same speaker all the way throughout. But while in verses 1 through 24, it was very personal, it was very inward focused. Now he's looking beyond himself, isn't he? He's he's looking beyond himself that what has come upon all of his all of his fellow all of his fellow the people of Jerusalem, all of those who are with me and the daughter of my people, for example, verse 48. And he's giving some general directions before that. He's not merely working through his own personal repentance and his own searching for hope and finding hope in the Lord, but he's now giving some more general directions. For example, in 28, to 30, and more general reflections upon the very character of God, for example, in 25 to 27. And so we still have the same man speaking, but he's not as much personally focused. He's talking about his nation as a whole. He's talking about the need for all, himself and others. And so he says, let us, let us, verse 40, test and examine ourselves. So you see, he's moved out. He's thinking about himself together with his fellow Judeans, his fellow Israelites. And he's thinking about the oppressions which come upon him. He's thinking about all of these external things. And you see, people of God, The long road to peace is sometimes long because repentance comes slowly, sometimes it's long because there's all these external factors over which you don't really have control. Do you see that image now in this chapter? So as we just kind of zoom out and consider that movement, before we zoom in and work through it. Five points, I think that's the first time that's happened since I came here, trying to break up the movements of our text. But do we see there's all these external factors? He's still thinking about the Babylonians. He's still thinking about the unrighteous people of his own nation who are oppressing him. Sometimes it's hard to make that distinction. Is he talking about one or the other or both? He's still thinking about the need for everyone to repent. Let us test and examine our ways. He's still thinking about the destruction in which they all stand. These are all kinds of external factors, which for the speaker of this chapter is going to make the road to peace a long one, isn't it? He knows the faithfulness of God, but there's still these difficulties, these circumstances surrounding him. There is, let us say this, there are many pieces to the puzzle. And that's how life too often is, isn't it? Many pieces to the puzzle. So let us come to our first point, enduring silence. And this is a more general direction, we might say, more general reflection upon who God is and what we should do than it is quite the intense personal language of verses 1 to 24. And so he begins with reflecting upon who the Lord is. Who is the Lord? The Lord is good, and he is good to those who wait on him. It is good to wait upon him. Good, good, good. Remember our sets of three here? That's the Hebrew word tav, or good. Told we've come to To the T of the Hebrew alphabet and and that's going to start each line of this section The Lord is good and in the Hebrew the first word is good It is good and the Hebrew the first word is good It is good and and and the Hebrew the first word is good all of this reflecting upon who God is and That it is good for us to wait on him to wait on his salvation But then, in the midst of this, as we're going through the difficult circumstances, what are we going to be doing? We're going to be sitting in silence. We're going to be sitting in silence. And this should not be a silence, the context tells us, this shouldn't be a silence of drowning in one's sorrow and loneliness, but rather a silence of contemplation upon what he has just said. upon verses let us say this 22 to 27 let us now sit silently and contemplate these things just like in Psalm 46 be still and know that I am God that's the thought we have here let him sit silence sit in contemplation upon this character of God, which is a good character, which is a faithful character, which is a merciful character. God is good. It's good for me to sit in silence looking to Him. The strikes and the blows, they're still coming. They're still coming. There are still those who are being, throwing insults at him, verse 30, but let me sit, lock out the world and consider who God is. Because that is where my salvation is, 26. He is the one who is good, verse 25. And so the question in verse 29 about where there may be hope has already been answered. And so there's this enduring silence, a contemplative silence. You know, it's true that when grief comes, it's often very isolating. This is the tendency of grief. Timothy Rogers was a Puritan minister who himself suffered from deep bouts of depression. He even had to take time off of the ministry for more than a year. And he said this, quote, people in sorrow love solitude. They are full of sorrow, and sorrow, if it is taken deep root, is naturally reserved, flies from all conversation. Grief is a thing that is very silent and private, end of quote. You see, there's this tendency to let grief isolate in the sense of drowning in sorrows. And there's a number of reasons for that. It's difficult to understand the position of one going through the grief. There are a number of factors which lead to this kind of isolation. But our text is saying, this is the general advice, don't drown in the sorrow. Don't drown in the silence. Contemplate the goodness of God in that silence. Enduring silence. Escaping sorrow, five points, so some of them won't be too long. Escaping sorrow, point two. God does not delight for this to continue. He will not cast out forever. We're reminded here of Ezekiel chapter 18 where we read that God does not take pleasure in the death of the wicked. Or Ezekiel 18 verse 32, he kind of brings that section to a conclusion and the prophet there says, for I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the sovereign Lord, repent and live. And very much the need for repentance is part of the context here. The Lord doesn't delight to bring these afflictions. His character is one which would uphold the one who is being crushed. He does not afflict from his heart, verse 33. He doesn't afflict from his heart, he brings just wrath, but he delights to uphold the one who is crushed. No, the Lord says this, repent and live. And that's the word which ends Ezekiel 18, and that's the movement of this text. It's no accident that we read... It is not from the mouth of the Most High. Is it not, verse 38, from the mouth of the Most High that good and bad come? Bad in which sense? Bad in the sense of there's judgments, there's all these external difficulties. Jerusalem has crumbled. It seems bad, but what context is this in? It's in the context of those who need to repent, verse 40. That's the context it's in. escaping sorrow. But God does not delight to bring this sorrow. God does not delight to bring this judgment. No, God brings it justly. God speaks and it comes to pass. This is true. But God desires that all would repent and live. God brings final judgment. God does treat with fairness. And God has the power over all things. Verses 37 to 39, that's what we see there. He has power over all things as the creator. That's the reference at the beginning of verse 37. Who has spoken and it came to pass. What does that make us think of? It makes us think of how God created all things by the word of his mouth. He has power over what happens. Verse 38, good and bad. And He has a power that is just so much different than ours. How can a living man complain? In light of the Most High, who has sovereign control over all things, in light of the Most High, who is the creator of all things, how can I complain? And of course, that anticipates then, verse 40, how can I complain? because I'm a sinner who must examine my ways. Do you see how verse 39 leads into verse 40? Oh, the depths of the riches and the wisdom and knowledge of God, how unsearchable are his judgments and his paths beyond tracing out. Romans 11 verse 33. At this point, people of God, before we begin point three, before we make that leap from verse 39 to verse 40, see how much reflection there has been on the character of God from verse 25 to 39. Thinking upon who God is is always a good thing for those in difficulties, and we reflect with the even greater assurance now. We reflect with the greater clarity now because now we can say things like the salvation which was promised came through the very Son of God who came in weakness and died for sinners. God's character has always been good, that was always in his plan. And the writer of Lamentations is right to reflect upon the character of God in the heart of this chapter. And now, don't we see that even so much more clearly? This is the movement of scripture, that God is always good and he displays that goodness in sending his very son to die for sinners. It was not right to question God, but rather to contemplate the goodness of His character at the time of the destruction of Jerusalem. Certainly, it is not right to question God now, when we know how the promised deliverance came, through the death of His Son. People of God, it is good to reflect on God's character, and we can see that even more clearly now, in our own day. We trust in the one who is light and gave himself up for salvation. God's character is good. He has no pleasure in the wicked, but he says, repent and live. And so that movement of Ezekiel chapter 18 is the same movement in Lamentations 3. For now we do come to our third point. We move from verse 39 into verse 40. Let us test and examine our ways and return to the Lord. Return that word which has the image of turning off of the path of wickedness and turning onto the path of righteousness, going out of the broad way and onto the narrow way, repenting, seeking God for life. Let us test and examine our ways and return to the Lord. Let us lift up our hearts and hands to God in heaven. Repentance is an all-inclusive thing. Returning to the Lord involves everything. It involves what? It involves our physical actions, our hands, what our hands are doing. It involves our very inner emotions, where our heart is and what our heart is doing. And so the language of hearts and hands is used in verse 41. Because we have transgressed. We are rebellious. We are sinners by our very nature. In other words, it's good to not only reflect upon the character of God, but also to reflect upon our own sinful character and our need of Him, that God is always just. And remember now that he's speaking in the first person plural. There were many sins in Jerusalem. This is why they were judged and there have been many calls to repentance and now here is another one After the destruction has come the calls to repentance are seen everywhere They they appear Just one example, Jeremiah 4 verse 4, circumcise yourselves to the Lord, circumcise your hearts, you people of Judah and inhabitants of my Jerusalem, or my wrath will flare up and burn like fire because of the evil you have done. You see there was language there of repentance, repent with your very heart. Jeremiah declares this before the destruction comes, it comes with the warning and we could turn to hundreds of verses like that. And now the destruction has come and you know what, the basic message is still the same. The basic message is still this, examine your hearts and turn your hearts to God. God is good, we are sinners. But, verses 44 and 45, it is true that in the context of the nation, in the context of calling the nation to examine its ways, God is not hearing the nation at this time. There is no true repentance and so God is wrapping himself as with a cloud. In other words, the nation has fallen so far, the destruction on Jerusalem has become so complete that they're worse off than that rebellious wilderness generation, right? Because the rebellious wilderness generation, they had a cloud which displayed God's glory. But now what do we have? We have people that have become so rebellious, they have been judged, the city has been destroyed, and now they're coming to God, and it's a cloud which is impenetrable. It's a cloud of God not hearing. They have been wicked. And God will not hear their prayers. They have become scum and garbage. The external circumstances of devastation and destruction, verse 47, are still there. They haven't gone anywhere. And it's related to spiritual hearts which are not coming in true repentance. And so God is not hearing them, verse 44. Two easy questions, one slightly more difficult question. Slowing down. Should we examine the sins of our own heart? Well, that's an easy question, isn't it? I hope it is. Yes, we should examine the sins of our own heart. Should we call those who are in sin to repent? Yes, this shouldn't be a difficult question either. And notice that not only are these questions which we should all know the answer to, but they're questions to which the answer is always yes, no matter what the circumstance. The answer to both of those questions is yes, whether we're in a crumbling national situation, a crumbling personal situation, or whether things externally look good. You know, the neighbor who has been blessed externally, we might say this, upon whom the rain is falling very well, to use that as kind of an illustration of right God pours rain on both the just and the unjust. Everything looks good from the outside, but if he's living in rebellion against God, He's actually in the same need for repentance and salvation as the rebellious Israelites in destroyed Jerusalem. These questions, should we examine our own hearts? Should we call those who are in sin to repent? Yes and yes and yes in every situation. Repent and live. Repent and believe. As we transition into point four, what's a question that's a little more difficult, a little more complicated? For those who do not repent, do we continue to cry out to God on their behalf? Well, that brings us into our fourth point. And we see that the answer is yes. He's not saying we anymore. In verse 48 and following, he changes to my. And the language of my tears, the tears of this faithful one who has seen that hope is in the Lord, who would call his fellow Judeans to repentance. Tears are framing that he wants the Lord to look down from heaven and see. He wants the Lord to look down from heaven and see that there is no repentance. To paraphrase verse 50 in context, he wants the Lord to look down from heaven and bring the people to repentance. You see, we're not only called to examine our sins, we're not only called to call other people to sins, but we can also cry before God for those who are not crying before God themselves. You see what I mean? Do you have people within your family who have abandoned the Lord? Do you have neighbors? Do you have coworkers? who are in rebellion against God. We all know someone who's in rebellion against God. Some of us know many someones. Some of us know someone very close to us who is in rebellion against God. Some of us, maybe they're not so close. What can we do? We can cry out to God on their behalf with tears. Lord, this one has not repented and is not crying out to you. I'm going to cry out to you for him, for her. Lord, there's no desire in this heart to ask that you would come, that you would see them, that you would deliver them. I'm gonna cry out and say, Lord, deliver them. This is absolutely an appropriate prayer. It's a prayer framed by tears. It's a prayer for those who are persecuting him. There's all this language of pits and plots and vengeance and tauts and curses. It's not clear in verses 55 to 66 if or when the transition is made from the persecution of the rebellious Israelites or the need for the Babylonians to be destroyed for what they have done because they overstepped their bounds in coming in and being so vicious in their destruction of Jerusalem. Perhaps verse 60 is a clue that Babylon is now in view. But if we kind of step back and look at the picture, he's praying for those who are not repenting, he's praying for those who are persecuting him. He's been hunted like a bird, a witch, Already at this time in history, the fowler had all kinds of different techniques, right? You're gonna try this, you got plan A, you got plan B, you got plan C, you got plan D, and you're gonna make sure you get that bird. Well, that's the picture here. They're going after me. If this doesn't work, they're gonna do this. If that doesn't work, they're gonna do that. They just keep coming after me like a hunter after, like a fowler after the birds. They've cast me alive into the pit. a pit of despair. Now there's, it's true, remember we don't know if Jeremiah wrote this or not, because it doesn't say within Lamentations. It is true that Jeremiah was cast into a pit when he was preaching the need for repentance. Read that for example in Jeremiah 38. Some say that this pit sounds like a much different kind of pit. Some say maybe it is the same. We don't really get enough details to make a connection or not. But it's that image of, yeah, a righteous preacher is, we don't like to hear him, we're gonna throw him into the pit. Whether this is Jeremiah or not, that's the image. A pit of despair, a pit where the water's gonna come in and drown the one who is trapped This is how he is being treated. He calls upon the Lord in such a time, again returning to the Lord who will say, Do not fear. He remembers the words of God. We can simply say again, as we can say how often, consider how important it is to have knowledge of what God says, of what scripture says. Psalm 37 speaks also of this. The mouth of the righteous utter wisdom and their tongues speak what is just. The law of the Lord is in their hearts. Their feet do not slip. So as he's in the pit, he remembers what God says and he's strengthened. People of God, the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus. The picture of this pit is a picture of dying, of being persecuted, and our own sin is sin which leads to death. But life, redemption is in Jesus Christ, our Lord. And that's the movement into verse 58, our final, our fifth point. You have taken up my cost, you have redeemed my life. And indeed, that language of being redeemed from the pit can be not just an image of persecution, but an image of salvation also. For example, in Psalm 103, you have redeemed my life from the pit. He's expecting salvation, salvation which is in God. We might say this stepping back again. We see how fickle is man, how man will persecute his own, how man will be cruel to those under him, but God is the one who has a character which is the same yesterday, today, and forever. God is the one who we can call our helper. And so that's Hebrews 13 verse 6 and 13 verse 8. God is the one whose character is good. God is the one who can redeem our life. Lord, you've seen all this wrong done to me. You've seen all their vengeance. Vengeance, maybe now we are speaking about Babylon. In their last years of their rebellion, the people of Jerusalem, they killed one of the governors from Babylon that was over them. They also sought help from the Egyptians. So vengeance could be a used word to describe how Babylon would come against them. Vengeful for the killing of their governor, vengeful for their disobeying their orders as a subordinate nation. All these swirling pieces of the puzzle. All these persecutions from the rebellious of his own nation and the destruction which the Babylonians have brought. But he prays. He prays for the salvation, as we've seen already, and he also calls for justice upon the wrong deeds. So now we see both of these things. We saw the tears in verses 49 through 51, and now we see also leaving vengeance, leaving judgment in God's hand in verses 64 to 66. Is it good and right for a Christian to say both of these things? How can the same Christian be moved to tears, praying that there would be repentance of those who persecuted him, And then just a handful of verses later say, God judged the wicked. Well, isn't this a picture of absolutely the way that we are to leave all things in God's hand? We can pray both of these things. Absolutely. In short, Lord God, bring those who rebel against you and persecute your people to repentance. If they repent not, judge them in all your just wrath. It's a good Christian prayer to say both of these things. We are not one-sided or simplistic. We rely upon God for all things and can pray both of those prayers to Him. There is salvation in God, there is final justice in God. Vengeance is mine, says the Lord, I will repay. Don't take that judgment into your own hands, but leave it to the Lord to repay according to the work of their hands, verse 64. All these puzzle pieces, there's a lot going on, isn't there? The narrow road sometimes still has lots of turns and thorns and difficulties. Quoting from Timothy Rogers again. He said, you whose mountain is still strong, whose hopes are yet unshaken, may think the road is easy, but if you ever come to be sorely tempted to be afflicted with long and sharp trials, if you come to be greatly pained in your bodies and greatly troubled in your souls, If you are awakened with the sight of hell and the threats of the law and are broken by the terrors of the Almighty, you will join your cries to ours and say that the way is very narrow and difficult indeed. Job, Haman, that's the author of Psalm 88, Asaph, David, and many others found it to be so. We can say it this way, people of God, when there's all these puzzle pieces and the road is long, give yourself time and space to digest all that's involved in your suffering. Because maybe like the author of Lamentations 3, Coming to the end of a personal spiritual struggle with the declaration of the great faithfulness of God is not gonna end the story because there's still all kinds of external difficulties surrounding you. The road to peace may be a long and difficult one. There could be all kinds of different reasons for that. Maybe it is because there hasn't been true repentance. Or maybe like the author of Lamentations, it's because true personal repentance is still surrounded by all kinds of external difficulties and wickedness. But whichever kind of road it is, longer, shorter, full of thorns, not full of thorns and difficulties, make sure it's the narrow road. Make sure it's the road which has Jesus Christ at the center of it and His good character and salvation in Him always on our hearts. Amen. Let us pray. Lord, our Lord, What a big, complicated picture the speaker of Lamentations 3 has left for us. But Lord, may we learn, may we learn from this faithful saint, whether it be Jeremiah or some other faithful believer Lord, let us learn to keep reflection on your faithfulness and goodness at the center. Let us learn to plead for others. Let us learn to hear the words, do not fear, in accordance with your faithfulness and life which is in Jesus Christ from you. So we pray in Jesus' name, amen. Let us stand, people of God, and sing number 532. Let's stand and sing all the stanzas together. ♪ Be still, my soul, the Lord is on your side ♪ ♪ Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain ♪ be still my soul of my soul your God will understand to guide the future as he has the past. I hope your confidence will not be shamed. His voice. ♪ In the vale of tears ♪ ♪ Then shall your better know his love, his heart ♪ ♪ Can't repay ♪ ♪ Found his own goal ♪ ♪ Where's all he takes away? ♪ ♪ He said, my soul, the hour is hastening on ♪ when we shall be forever with the Lord. When disappointment, grief, and fear are gone, sorrow forgot, love's purest joys restored. Be still, my soul, when chains and tears are past. I'll sing and weep. People of God, it's now time for the morning gifts and offerings. This morning for the General Fund, following this, are Benediction and Doxology 571, which is a little bit different tune than 572, but still glory be to the Father and I trust familiar. Yeah. If you would stand, receive the parting blessing of our God. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen. ♪ Glory to the Father and to the Son ♪ As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. Yeah. So,